by Callie Croix
The pads of his fingers brushed the edge of the slick bundle of nerves. She wriggled and arched, pleading for more. The build-up had been sexy as hell, but now he was edging into the realm of torture. And yet knowing she had to wait made it hotter somehow. Part of her never wanted this to end, while another demanded release. When he gave her clit another languorous caress, she fought not to struggle in his grip. Her orgasm was right there, so close. She could come with just a bit more pressure.
The demands of her body won out. “Oh, God… Please, I can’t stand it.”
She felt his smile form against her neck. “Can’t you?”
“No.” She’d do anything. Anything if he’d just let her come.
“Then say what you need.” The sharp command jolted her.
“Your cock,” she panted, not in the least embarrassed that he’d reduced her to begging. This was even better than she’d imagined it would be. “I need it.”
In answer he pressed a few inches deeper inside. An agonizingly slow penetration that was too much and yet not enough. She groaned in frustration and tried to buck her hips, but he held her fast.
“No, you’ll take it slow,” he bit out, voice ragged with the effort of maintaining control. “Slow and steady until I’m buried all the way inside you and you can’t breathe without needing to come.”
The sensual threat only made her wetter.
That heavy, stretching pressure went on and on as he worked his cock into her, forcing her to feel every nuance of his possession until the pleasure licked at her like tiny flames. When he was fully embedded, he delicately grazed the edge of her clit with the pad of one diabolical finger.
“Reid!” She threw her head back, eyes squeezed shut against the sensual agony. She bucked in his hold, trying to shove back onto the thick cock impaling her. She needed more. To be fucked harder. Nothing had ever felt this good. Every nerve ending sizzled.
Reid stilled her frantic efforts with an unbreakable grip on her hair and a forearm around hip. His finger withdrew from her clit, leaving her hanging on the precipice of a cataclysmic orgasm. The air sawed in and out of her lungs. Her skin was slick with perspiration, every muscle bowed taut under the strain. A keening sound slipped past her lips, equal parts frustration and disappointment.
“Shhhh. Hold on, baby.”
Becca swallowed and let her head sag between her trembling arms. She understood what he wanted. He was completely in control of her pleasure. If she wanted to come, she had no choice but to yield to his demands and let him take her over the edge when he chose.
Tonight my hands and voice will be the rope.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Becca forced her body to relax and surrendered to his mastery.
* * *
Poised above her when she exhaled that shaky breath, Reid felt the change in her immediately. Her straining body trembled beneath him for an instant, then quivered and went lax. Giving in to him completely.
The surrender, the open vulnerability in that submissive pose brought every protective instinct he possessed roaring to the surface. He released his hold on her hair and swallowed hard, awed by how far she was willing to place herself into his keeping. Knowing she trusted him that much moved him deep inside, touched a place he hadn’t even known existed.
When he kissed her temple, her soft whine almost undid him. He stroked an unsteady hand over the silky fall of her hair, ignoring the painful throb of his cock. The need to reassure and soothe her was eating him alive. He never wanted to let her go.
“Reid,” she whispered raggedly, reaching a hand up to grasp his forearm.
“Got you.” It was all he could force out of his tight throat.
With one hand anchored beside her head, he placed the other between her shoulder blades. Exerting gentle pressure, he forced her upper body down toward the mattress. She murmured low in her throat and obeyed. Her cheek touched the bedspread, her long lashes casting shadows across her cheekbones. A shaky sigh escaped her parted lips, the muscles in her back and legs vibrating with repressed need.
With her head tilted to the side, he smoothed his palm over her back in reassurance. “That’s right, baby, relax. Give in to it,” he soothed in a rough voice, rewarding her with unhurried sweeps of his hand up and down her spine, giving her time to come down from that sharp edge.
Becca exhaled slowly, a tiny ripple moving through her body. He memorized the sight of her like this. In her everyday life she was utterly confident and in control. Fiercely independent. Seeing her this helpless, all shields down as she submitted to him so completely, almost threw him over the edge. Knowing she’d never let go like this for anyone but him filled him with triumph.
“There,” he whispered against her shoulder when she’d relaxed fully. Totally open to him, letting him do whatever he wanted. Her body was primed to explode, waiting for the right caress that would hurl her into oblivion. His cock throbbed mercilessly, a constant reminder he had to stay in control to ensure her pleasure.
Fighting back the need to pound into her snug pussy, he spent a few minutes stroking her hair and raining tender kisses over her jaw, her face. The struggle to master his need cost him, but Becca was worth the pain he suffered. She responded to his efforts by tipping her face toward his mouth, wordlessly asking for more while her body moved in a sensual, rippling motion.
“Mmm, Reid…” Her voice held a drowsy, almost drugged edge. Despite the outward sign of her yielding, she rocked her hips toward him ever so slightly in a silent plea for completion. For release. Something he was dying to give her.
He withdrew his cock part way then thrust forward gently. The low, erotic moan she made had him shaking. “You like that?” he managed, fighting not to grit his teeth at the exquisite agony running through him.
“Mmm-hmm.” She licked her lips and sighed, eyes remaining closed while her body quivered on the edge of orgasm. Her expression was that of pure bliss.
That hard edge inside him demanded he keep pushing her. “You love it that I’m bigger than you, don’t you? That I’m stronger. You love knowing I could do anything I want to you right now and you couldn’t stop me.”
She gave a hesitant nod, breathing fast.
The tiny acknowledgement soothed the primal part of him even as it threatened the last of his control. It made him so hot to know Becca loved it when he got physical like this. Her pussy was so wet, the tiny muscles caressing him with each stroke. He knew the words would drive her even higher. “You love it when I’m rough. Because you know damn well I’d never push you further than you’re willing to go.” He spoke in a low voice against her ear, wrenching a quiver out of her. “Don’t you.” It wasn’t a question.
She swallowed convulsively, forced a nod of acquiescence.
“Say it.”
“Yes.” Her voice was barely audible above the blood roaring in his ears.
He scraped his teeth over the sensitive spot beneath her earlobe, where her pulse throbbed hard and fast. “Say the words.”
“Yes, I love it. I want more.”
“Why?” he demanded.
Becca licked her lips. “Because I need you and trust you,” she whispered hoarsely.
Yes.
He closed his eyes, savoring the victory he knew it was. A deep growl of satisfaction rumbled up from deep in his chest. Gathering the last bit of control, he forced the words out. “I’m gonna make you come so hard now.”
Before she could answer he grasped her hip with one hand and started in with a slow, sensuous rhythm. His other hand slid down her hair, over her shoulders and spine to dip around and tease the satin-soft skin of her belly. Her hips lifted automatically, taking his cock deeper into her clinging warmth, her trembling thighs parting wider.
Reid clenched his jaw at the proof of her eagerness, watching his cock slide in and out of her, c
oated with the shimmering juices of her arousal. “Your clit ache?”
Her cheek rubbed against the covers as she nodded. “Hurts. I need to come. Please let me.”
Ah, baby. “I will.” He caressed the carefully trimmed curls shielding her sex with his fingertips. She was drenched, more than ready to come, her hot flesh swollen and slippery.
Becca’s spine arched. She made a soft, choked sound and bit her lip, her eyes squeezed shut as she reached for release.
Reid leaned down to nip at her mouth, forcing himself to keep talking when all he wanted to do was snarl and plunge into her. “No. I want to hear how good it feels when I fuck you and rub your clit.”
Her lips parted, her soft mouth opening on a tremulous cry of need. The sound echoed deep inside him, wrapped around his heart until he thought it might burst.
“Yeah,” he rasped against her ear, fucking her deep and slow, keeping pace with his fingers caressing her taut bud. “Just like that, beautiful. More.”
He could feel the muscles of her pussy flutter around him, the catch in her breathing telling him she was right on the edge. Grazing his teeth across her shoulder, he nipped where it joined her neck. A little more pressure against her clit, and her plaintive moan turned into a wail.
Oh, fuck yes.
Reid wound his free hand into her hair, fisted in it to anchor her in place against the bed. The move rendered her powerless against his strength and the hard stroke of his cock into her pussy, forcing her to feel every single thing he did to her. He pressed his fingers carefully against her vulnerable nub, giving her the pressure she craved but letting her grind into his touch in whatever way felt best for her.
The tenuous hold of his control began to fray at the wild sounds she made. The breath shot in and out of his aching lungs. “All of you. I want all of you, Bec.” The words were husky, desperate with lust, but they were the truth. Somehow he had to hold off until he made her come undone completely. She owned him, body and soul. He needed the same in return.
His cock moved slickly within her pussy, rubbing over every pleasure point with each gliding stroke. She was so tight around him. Holding his shaft in a jealous grip. He fucked her with firm thrusts, tender and steady while he pushed her response higher.
“Oh, God…oh, Reid—”
Let go, he willed her fiercely, watching in the mirror as her face contorted with wild pleasure.
Her clit twitched between his fingers. Her inner walls tightened. Becca’s shriek of ecstasy morphed into a sobbing scream. The muscles of her pussy squeezed hard around him. She threw her head back, her spine arched in a taut bow as the release finally tore through her.
With a strangled roar, Reid let himself go. He slammed into her from behind, hips slapping against her ass while she bucked in his grip. He savored every exquisite, excruciating thrust. The pleasure licked across his skin, burning him alive from the inside out as he exploded. Pulse after agonizing pulse ripped through him, leaving him exhausted and trembling.
When he could at last open his eyes again he looked down at where his cock was still buried inside Becca’s willing body. His fists were clamped so tight around her hips he knew he’d leave marks, and part of him reveled in the knowledge. He uncurled his hands and caressed the red imprints with apologetic fingertips. Hating to move but wanting her to be comfortable, he gently withdrew from her warmth and stroked a soothing hand over her lower back. It took several deep, slow breaths to get his respiration under control. Without him supporting her, Becca collapsed onto her belly, as though her legs couldn’t hold her up anymore.
Almost afraid of what he’d see in her eyes after what they’d just done, he crouched over her vulnerable form and brushed back the damp hair that had fallen over her face. His heart clenched when he saw the tear tracks marking her cheeks. Murmuring soft words of comfort, he covered her face with tender kisses. It awed him that she’d let go that far. Being able to bring her down slowly from that high with kisses and caresses filled him with an aching tenderness he’d never felt before.
Drawing in a shaky breath, she finally opened her eyes to look at him. Her tentative smile squeezed his heart. Her expression was filled with wonder as she raised unsteady fingers to caress his bristled cheek. Reid let out the breath he’d been holding and turned his head to kiss her palm. If she could touch him so lovingly after what they’d just done, there was still a chance for them.
“I missed you so goddamn much,” he whispered, shaking his head at what an idiot he’d been. If he’d died over there, she never would have had a clue how he felt about her.
Her expression went blank with surprise for a moment and when she spoke, her response did nothing to ease his anxiety. “If you missed me so much, why did you cut me off like that all of a sudden? You hurt me.”
The pain and utter bewilderment in her voice sliced into his gut. She deserved an answer, no matter how pathetic it might be. He propped himself up on an elbow beside her and ran his other hand over her hair. “I’m sorry I hurt you.” God, he was sorrier than he could say. “Things were moving so fast between us before I left. When you hit me with that email it floored me. I realized just how into you I really was.”
Her dark eyebrows drew together. “You’re saying I scared you away with a sexy email?”
He grunted, offended that she would think so little of him. “I don’t scare easy, beautiful, so no. I guess in a way I was trying to protect you. We don’t have much privacy over there, and I didn’t want anyone else reading those intimate things you wrote.” Murphy had caught the first few lines before he’d kicked him out of the tent and threatened to cut off his balls if he breathed a word of Becca’s email to anyone. Murph had given him a hard time about it at every opportunity since. Not that Reid cared. He could take the ribbing; he just wanted to make sure he never did anything to break Becca’s trust. But he’d wound up doing exactly that without intending to, hadn’t he?
“And here I thought you’d be bragging about it to all your buddies,” she said wryly.
Though he knew she was teasing, he frowned in outrage. “Fuck no. That’s private, between just you and me, and it’s no one else’s business. I didn’t respond afterward because for the next couple of days we were busy doing missions, always in and out with not much time to sleep, let alone send emails. And to be honest, I didn’t know what the hell to say to you anyway.”
She gave him a look that said he must be stupid. “How about something as simple as ‘I’m thinking of you’ or ‘Miss you’?”
Yeah, he should’ve at least said that much. Jesus, how could he make her understand? He stroked his thumb across her cheekbone in silent apology. “Right after that, everything went to hell over there.” He’d lost many friends that terrible day, men he’d considered brothers.
Her expression softened, the beautiful crystalline depths of her eyes shadowed with empathy and a hint of fear. “I know. God, Reid, you don’t know how scared I was that something had happened to you. I was frantic after that story broke.”
He nodded. “I’m sorry for that too.” Without a doubt she’d been glued to the news, desperate for information about him. He felt badly that she’d had to find out from someone else that he was okay.
She was incredibly smart, and the SEAL books he’d seen in her bookcase earlier told him just how seriously she took learning about what he was and what his job entailed. At first he’d assumed all her questions to him about being a SEAL had been out of mere curiosity, but now he realized it was much more than that. As soon as the news about the chopper crash had broken, she’d have known he’d be out there hunting the cell that brought the Chinook down. How could he possibly make her understand the way he’d felt then?
“We went out as soon as we heard the news,” he continued, “and they kept us pretty busy for a few weeks afterward. When we got back to base I didn’t much feel like talking to any
one. Not even my family. I just kind of withdrew, wanted to be only with my teammates because I knew they got me in a way no one else ever could. I can’t really explain it any better than that, but can you try to understand why I felt that way?”
After studying him thoughtfully for several seconds, she nodded. “Okay. Yeah, I think so.”
Tension he hadn’t even realized he held suddenly released from his shoulders. He hadn’t expected her to be this understanding so quickly.
The brush of her thumb over his lower lip brought his gaze back to hers. Her eye makeup had smudged at some point in their lovemaking. Even with the black smears under her eyes and the mascara trails her tears had left on her cheeks, she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen. Her warmth and kind heart ignited a fierce ache in his chest.
“So…what now?” she whispered, tracing delicate patterns over his bicep with a fingertip.
“Now I hold you all night long so I can wake up beside you and make you melt all over again.” With her beside him in the bed he could finally settle into the deep sleep his body had been deprived of for so long. Though he had more to say, he didn’t think she was quite ready to hear the rest of it yet. And frankly, he wanted more time to figure out how to word it. Morning would come soon enough.
Her face brightened. “You can stay?”
He smiled at her excitement. “Until the end of the weekend. Maybe even longer, depending on our training schedule.” They’d been worked hard these past few weeks. The higher-ups would give them more downtime if they could. “But I’ve got until at least Monday morning with you.”
And then what?
She didn’t say it aloud, but she didn’t have to because he knew that’s what she was thinking. They both were. If they moved forward, being part of his life wouldn’t be easy. And sometimes it would be damn hard on her. Thankfully she didn’t press the issue, and he was glad because he didn’t have all the answers. There were no easy ones anyway. He just hoped she was willing to give them a shot long-term so he could have a chance to show her he was worthy of her. He’d never let her down again. He just had to figure out a way to convince her of that.